Here in the United States, the cost of living has gone up dramatically over the last several years. According to some estimates, the Social Security Administration is attempting to help seniors out by raising the cost of living adjustment (COLA) that is often worked into Social Security payments by about $60 per month.
This isn’t official–no word has come out of the SSA on what the annual COLA increase-if any-is going to be yet. However, these increases do usually occur if there’s been significant inflation or increases in the cost of living. A $60 increase in monthly checks would be about a 3.2 percent increase. Comparatively, in 2022, inflation rose by about 6.5 percent throughout the course of the year. There’s still a lot of 2023 left to go, but there have been many concerns that the rate of increase is moving too fast for the average person to keep up with.
People on a fixed income can’t do the little things that younger folk can do to help offset these changes in costs. For example, I was listening to a finance podcast earlier today to prepare for writing this piece and heard that “it’s easier to earn more money than to cut your costs.” While this is perhaps good advice for a 30 year old, it’s not easy at all for someone in their 80s.
The rising cost of living is of growing concern for many seniors in need of care.
The absence of a COLA can significantly impact seniors. This population usually relies on fixed incomes during retirement. Without a COLA, seniors face reduced purchasing power as their incomes fail to keep up with rising living costs due to inflation. We’re seeing this in other populations right now, too. It can lead to problems with covering healthcare expenses, housing costs, and basic needs. Seniors may deplete their savings more quickly, struggle to afford healthcare, and face housing instability. Spending on activities that enhance their quality of life may be limited.
Seniors should already be cautiously planning for healthcare and long-term care costs. Relying on a COLA is often a part of that plan. Even with this, access to care might be more difficult because of all-around rising costs.
Financial issues are one of the biggest struggles that seniors face when it comes to getting connected to senior care. Senior care is expensive and unfortunately, this can prohibit some people from getting the care and attention that they need as they age. But everyone deserves the highest quality care possible. Different folks have different needs as they age, and access to care or a lack of care because of finances should never occur.
If you’d like to learn more about paying for senior care, get in touch with us. We offer free consultation sessions designed to help answer questions just like this.
Everyone has different needs when it comes to care. If you’re unsure of where to start, we’d be happy to talk more. Give us a call or send an email. The sooner you start planning, the less of an impact money will have on the quality of care your family receives.
Leave a Reply